{
  "id": "RL31132",
  "type": "CRS Report",
  "typeId": "REPORTS",
  "number": "RL31132",
  "active": false,
  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
  "versions": [
    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 101100,
      "date": "2001-08-31",
      "retrieved": "2016-05-24T20:21:18.870941",
      "title": "Multinational Patent Acquisition and Enforcement: Public Policy Challenges and Opportunities for Innovative Firms",
      "summary": "Globalization and technology have been viewed as increasingly prominent influences upon the\nU.S.\neconomy. This perception has led to renewed attention towards the pragmatic aspects and policies\nof multinational patent acquisition and enforcement. Patent protection has long been understood to\nbe a fundamental mechanism for encouraging the pursuit of technological knowledge, particularly\nfor entrepreneurs and small, innovative firms. Recent trends reveal that U.S. industry has come to\nrely more heavily upon the world's patent systems, as compared to other intellectual property\nalternatives such as trade secrecy.\n  Although patent protection in a single jurisdiction is often ineffective to protect the interests\nof inventors, no true global patent system exists. If inventors desire intellectual property protection\nin a particular country, they must specifically procure a patent within that jurisdiction. Patent rights\ndo not arise automatically. Instead, inventors must submit applications to a national or regional\npatent office. Patent examiners then assess whether the application fully discloses and distinctly\nclaims a new and nonobvious invention. If allowed to issue, a granted patent provides its proprietor\nwith the right to exclude others from making, using or selling the patented invention. Patent rights\nare not self-enforcing, however, and those patent owners who wish to compel others to observe their\nintellectual property rights usually must commence civil litigation.\n  The patent systems of the United States and its trading partners are linked through a handful\nof international agreements that, together, comprise the international patent regime. The oldest of\nthese treaties, the Paris Convention, established an international priority system that facilitates the\nfiling of patent applications in many jurisdictions. The Patent Cooperation Treaty built upon the\nParis Convention by establishing a further procedural framework for expediting multinational patent\nacquisition. Finally, the World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of\nIntellectual Property Rights, the so-called TRIPS Agreement, in part required all of its signatories\nto provide for minimum substantive standards of patent protection and enforcement.\n  Acquiring and enforcing patent rights around the world is often a complex and expensive task. \nEntrepreneurs must additionally deal with considerable delays, difficulties in obtaining professional\nrepresentation, differences in national patent laws, inconsistent results and the particular problems\nof the developing world. Should Congress decide to address this issue, legislative options for\naddressing the multinational patent system include offering financial support to inventors, assessing\nthe impact of legal harmonization, reviewing patent office worksharing initiatives, providing\ntechnical assistance for foreign patent officials, and considering the propriety of an international\nagreement pertaining to patent enforcement.",
      "type": "CRS Report",
      "typeId": "REPORTS",
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      "topics": []
    }
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Economic Policy"
  ]
}